“Every time I preach I assume that God has someone within the sound of my voice who needs this power. Perhaps many of you would say, ‘I’m not a strong Christian. I’m a weak disciple.’ Well, there’s no reason for you to be. I’m going to ask you to get up out of your seats and come down here to the altar and ask God for His power! There’s no power in me, but there’s power in Jesus.” He hesitated, then went on, “I believe God is speaking to someone here about giving his life as a missionary. Come and we’ll pray about it.”
Winslow turned the pulpit over to the song leader, who announced a hymn title and page number. Clayton rose to his feet, fumbling with the hymnbook, and was shocked to see the aisles suddenly full and scores of people kneeling at the altar rail. He had never seen such a fervent response from a congregation, and he watched Reverend Winslow move from person to person, praying for each one. Clayton noticed that some had tears running down their faces, and he found himself strangely moved. Again he stole a glance at Seana and saw that she too was weeping. He took out his handkerchief and handed it to her. She murmured her thanks and wiped the tears from her face.
They sang for a long time, it seemed to Clayton, and then the service was concluded.
“Do you think we could meet him?” Seana asked. “After all, you are related.”
“I don’t see why not. Nobody’s with him at the moment.” Clayton and Seana walked over to the missionary, and Barney Winslow turned to greet them. He put out his hand to Clayton and said, “Good afternoon, brother.”
“I’m glad to meet you, Reverend Winslow. I’m Clayton Winslow. I’m a relative of yours. My father’s name is Leland.”
“How good it is to meet a family member here,” Barney said, smiling broadly. He turned to Seana and something changed in his face. “And how are you, my sister? Walking in the love of Jesus?” he asked gently.
“Oh, Brother Winslow, my heart’s so full!”
“I can see that.” Winslow reached out and took Seana’s hand. He held it for a moment, then closed his eyes and prayed, “Oh, God, I can see that your daughter here has a heart to serve you. She loves you, and I pray that you will guide her through the very door that you would have for her. Be with my kinsman here as well. You know his heart, Lord. I know how you long for him to serve you and to love you, and I pray that he might find you precious. In the name of Jesus I ask it.”
Clayton did not know what to say. His eyes suddenly stung, for no one had ever prayed for him like this. Huskily he said, “Thank you, Reverend Winslow.”
“Tell your father I’d love to see him while I’m in town. And the rest of your family. Do you suppose they would come with you to the service tomorrow?”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
Others were waiting to speak with the missionary, so the two turned away to leave the church. As they stepped outside, Seana turned to Clayton, her face filled with joy. “Wasn’t that wonderful! I’ve never heard a man preach like that.”
“Neither have I,” Clayton admitted. “He believes every word he says.”
“How proud you should be that he is of your blood.”
“Yes, I guess I am.”
The two walked to Clayton’s car and drove home. When he stopped in front of the house, he said, “Let’s go in the kitchen and get a bite to eat and some coffee.”
“But my dad will want to hear about all that happened,” Seana protested.
“We’ll go tell him in a bit. Come on. I want you to tell my parents about meeting Barney Winslow.”
“All right, then. I will.”
Clayton and Seana went inside and stepped into the parlor, surprised to find Sarah Mellon there with Clayton’s parents. Clayton noticed that Sarah’s lips were pale as she kept them tightly closed. “Oh, Sarah,” he said, “I didn’t know you’d be here.”
“I can see that.”
“We’ve just been to hear Reverend Barney Winslow preach,” Clayton babbled. “I believe you know Miss Seana Morgan.”
“We’ve met.”
“If I’d known you were coming, we could have all gone together.” Clayton was aware of the gloom that Sarah cast on the scene. She was obviously angry, and he tried to placate her. “We were just going to have some coffee and a snack before Seana went home. Come in and join us, Sarah. We’ll tell you about the service.”
“No, I really must be going,” Sarah said coldly. “Good night, Mr. Winslow, Mrs. Winslow.”
“I’ll walk you to your car,” Clayton offered.
He followed Sarah outside and said, “Look, I know you’re upset, but there’s really—”
“I believe you said once you found that girl attractive. I can see you still do.”
“Look, Sarah, there’s nothing—” But Clayton’s words were cut off as she slammed the door. “I’ll call you tomorrow,” he said. But he got no answer and Sarah sped off down the driveway. He turned to go back inside, feeling as flustered as he ever had in his life. He found Seana waiting for him. “Come on,” he said. “Let’s forget about the snack. I’ll walk you home.”
“All right.” She walked alongside him until they reached the cottage, and then she turned to him and said softly, “I’m sorry about all that.”
“Oh, she’ll get over it.”
“She’s very jealous, isn’t she?”
“Yes, she is a bit.” The stars overhead cast down a silver light, and he studied her face for a moment. They were standing close enough together that he could smell her perfume. She looked serene in the starlight, but he realized suddenly there was a fire in her that made her a lovely woman, a lively spirit behind the cool reserve of her lips.
Seana smiled, a gleam of humor in her eyes. “Aren’t you going to try to kiss me?”
“N-no . . . I don’t think so. I learned my lesson,” Clayton said, startled and amazed at how easily this girl could knock him off balance.
“There’s no pile of manure here for me to push you into,” she said as she swept her arm at the manicured grass. “It’s kind you were to go with me to hear Reverend Winslow. It was a wonderful night—but I am sorry about your lady.”
“I’ll see you tomorrow, Seana.”
“You won’t come in?”
“No, I’ve got to go try to explain to my parents.”
Seana stopped smiling. “Good night, then.” There was something in her voice he could not identify—perhaps a longing or some other emotion she was holding back.
“Good night.” As he moved away, he heard the sound of the door close and thought of what an unusual night it had been. He had been moved and stirred by the sermon—and now in a different way he had been stirred by Seana, who was so different from any girl he had ever known.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
A Time to Love
Sharon looked up from the bust she was working on, and one look at her father’s face told her that something was bothering him. “Hello, Dad.” She put down the wooden spatula and wiped her hands on a towel. “Sit down and we’ll have a cup of coffee. I need a break anyway.”
“All right.”
Sharon poured two large mugs from the coffeepot she kept on a hot plate and handed one to her father. She sat down across from him, and when he did not speak, she said, “What’s troubling you? I can see something’s on your mind.”
“I was always a pretty good poker player, which means I’ve been able to cover up what I think—but I guess I’ve lost that ability somewhere along the line.” Leland sipped his coffee, holding the cup in both hands, and slipped back into silence.
A thought struck her. She leaned forward and asked abruptly, “You’re not worrying about me, are you?”
“I am a little. Your mother and I always have, I guess.”
“You mean because I’ve never married?”
“Yes. We had always assumed you’d get married and have a family.” Leland stirred uneasily in his chair. “ To tell the truth, we’ve been worried about your seeing so much of Temple Smith. You’re not really getting ser
ious about him, are you?”
Sharon could not meet her father’s eyes. She turned away and studied the painting on the wall as if she had never seen it before. The silence grew longer. “I can’t tell you how I feel, Dad. I don’t know myself.” She waited for her father to protest, but she saw that he had no intention of saying more. “What’s really troubling you?” she asked, anxious to change the subject.
He sighed. “It’s financial problems.”
Her eyebrows lifted with surprise. Her father had never spoken with her about any sort of problem in his business. She had always assumed that things were going well, for she had lived an affluent life and never lacked for anything material. “Is it really serious?”
“I’m afraid it is, Sharon. I’ve never discussed these things with you, but during the last several months I’ve lost millions. I’ve been struggling to keep the company going, but it’s been getting worse. I had planned to revamp the whole organization, but I needed a sizeable loan to accomplish that, and the bank turned down my loan application.”
“How could they do that? You’ve banked with First National and Mr. Wright for years!”
“It wasn’t Daniel’s fault. He wanted to okay the loan, but the committee refused.” Leland swirled his coffee around and stared into it as if it would reveal some secret to him. Finally he lifted his head and shrugged. “There’s always a chance I can still pull things out, but if I go broke, I want you to be ready for it. I’ve already talked to Clayton, but don’t tell your mother. She doesn’t need this extra worry.”
Sharon reached over and put her hands over her father’s. “It’s all right, Dad. We’ll come out of this.”
Leland mustered up a smile. “I wonder what it would be like if we lost everything. There was a time when your mother and I had nothing, but then as the business prospered, you got spoiled. We all got used to money and the things it could buy. That’s why some men jumped off of buildings when they were down to their last million back in twenty-nine.”
Sharon gave her father what assurance she could, and the conversation gradually turned less serious. When he left, she went to the window and stared out at the opulent grounds, thinking of how she had never had to worry about money. She reflected on her father’s statement, “I wonder what it would be like if we lost everything.” Then she thought of Temple Smith. He apparently had little, yet he was one of the most well adjusted human beings she had ever met. She thought about the days they had spent together and whispered, “I don’t know how I feel about Temple. I wish I did!”
She went back to work but was troubled all day about the conversation she had had with her father. She knew it would crush her mother if the family lost all their money and their place in society. While Sharon worked she tried to imagine what that would be like, and to her surprise, she realized that money wasn’t all that important to her. Of course, she had a good income now from the sale of her pieces, so if her father went broke, she would not be destitute. And the loss of social prestige meant absolutely nothing to her. In fact, not having to worry anymore about their place in society would bring a sense of relief.
Her thoughts were interrupted when Clayton came in to bring her the mail. “Hi, sis.”
“Hello, Clayton. You going out?”
“I’m afraid so. Here’re the letters for you.” He was wearing a dinner suit and looked handsome but rather miserable.
“You look beautiful,” Sharon said with a grin. “If you drop dead, we won’t have to do anything to you. What kind of a party are you going to?”
“The same kind I always go to with Sarah. The kind where people show off and drink too much.”
“Then why are you going?”
“Because that’s what Sarah likes to do.” Clayton struck his hands together impulsively, betraying his impatience. “I hate these things! Sometimes I think I’d rather dig a ditch than go to another one of them.”
Sharon studied her brother, thinking what a handsome young man he was. But he doesn’t seem to know it, which is a good thing. Aloud she said, “Seana told me about your going to hear Barney Winslow.”
“Yes. You know, he is really something! I went back to hear him again by myself.”
“Really? I wish you had asked me. I’d have liked to hear him.”
“The meetings are over now, but I’ll tell you, sis. Listening to that man, I was proud to be a Winslow. Why, he’s done everything. Do you know he even killed a lion with his bare hands when he was a young man?”
“That sounds impossible.”
“It’s not, though. He didn’t tell the audience about that, but after the second service I talked to a fellow who travels with him and he told me about it. The Masai over there even call him the lion killer.”
“I’ll bet Seana liked him.”
“She sure did. We went up after the first meeting and met him, and he prayed over her. And I’ll tell you it really meant a lot to her.”
“She’s a sweet girl, isn’t she?”
“After she stopped pushing me into piles of manure, I kind of got a different view of her.” Clayton managed a grin. “I’d better be on my way to this wonderful party.”
“Have a good time. Maybe you and I ought to go out and celebrate something tomorrow.”
“Celebrate what?”
“I don’t know. The fact that we’re alive and well and healthy. So many people in this country are suffering. It makes me feel bad sometimes. We have everything, Clayton.”
He grew serious. “You’re right about that, and I don’t do a thing to deserve it.” He shook his head, then straightened up. “Well, we’ll go out and do the town tomorrow.”
“Have a good time tonight.”
“I won’t do that,” he announced grimly as he left.
Sharon glanced through the mail Clayton had brought her. She was pleased to see a letter from Temple. She thought about how much she had missed him and how deeply he had gotten into her life. She opened the single sheet and read it quickly:
Good news here, Sharon. My mother is doing very well. I plan to stay on for a little while longer just to be sure. To tell the truth, I’ve enjoyed being with her again. She’s a wonderful woman, and I know you’d love her.
I hope things are going well with you. I just wanted you to know that I haven’t forgotten what I said to you that evening we talked in the garden. I hope you haven’t either. I’m still waiting to hear the beautiful music you’re going to make someday!
With all my love,
Temple
The short note stirred Sharon, and she was touched that he would sign the letter With all my love. She sat down and read it again, trying to find more in it. She liked the fact that he was close to his mother. She knew Temple Smith had never been a mama’s boy, but he had a genuine affection for his mother that pleased her. She had heard someone say once, “See how a man treats his mother, and you’ll see how he treats his wife.”
She put the letter aside and worked late into the afternoon before being interrupted when Hannah Fulton came in.
“I’m sorry to disturb you at your work,” Hannah said as soon as the two had exchanged greetings. “I thought you’d be done by now. We haven’t seen each other for a while and it seemed like a good time for a chat.”
“No need to apologize. I’m through for the day. Why don’t we go to the kitchen and have Mabel fix us some supper? Everyone else had plans to eat elsewhere, so I thought I’d see if there were any leftovers from yesterday.”
Hannah agreed, and twenty minutes later the two were eating fried chicken and cole slaw in the smaller of the mansion’s two dining rooms.
“I got a letter from Temple today,” Sharon told her friend. “He’s with his mother in Oklahoma. She’s been ill.”
“I hope not seriously.”
“No, he says she’s fine now.” Sharon hesitated, then said, “I don’t know what to do, Hannah. Temple says that he loves me.”
Hannah turned her full attention on Sharon. “And what about
you? How do you feel about him?”
“I don’t know. I . . . I just don’t know. I haven’t had the most successful life where men are concerned.” She detected the tinge of bitterness in her own voice and quickly added, “I don’t mean to complain, but it makes me wonder if I can really care for any man.”
“If you love the man, marry him.”
“But I’m afraid, Hannah. I’m afraid of making the wrong choice.”
“Are you afraid he might be after your money?”
“I don’t think so, but I just can’t be sure.”
Hannah put down her fork and took a deep breath. “I love you, and I want to say something very bluntly. You lost your first love when you were young, and you’ve let that tragedy affect you. And then after you nearly gave your heart to a man who was not worthy, you built a wall about yourself. But you’re not too old now to get married and maybe even start a family. If you feel something for this man, don’t waste the woman that’s in you. The Bible says there’s a time to love, and this just might be your time.”
Hannah’s words troubled Sharon, and she was glad when her friend left. She sat for a long time pondering their conversation, but the more she thought about it, the more confused she became.
****
Sharon was in her room starting to get ready for bed when her father burst through the door without knocking. “Clayton’s been in an accident!” he shouted.
She jumped up. “Is he hurt badly?”
“I don’t know. Your mother and I are going to the hospital. I think you’d better come along.”
“Yes, of course.”
She rushed downstairs and grabbed her coat. The chauffeur was in the car waiting, and her father cried, “Don’t waste any time. Get us to the hospital quickly.”
Sharon tried to get more information, but her father knew nothing. “I just got a call from Dr. Fremont that he’s there at City Hospital. Let’s hope he’s all right.”
****
Dr. A. J. Fremont was one of the finest doctors in New York City. He looked more like a business executive than a doctor. His hair was silver, and he had piercing blue eyes and a soothing voice.
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